Ever Ask Why the Devil May Cry
by Kingdom Lightz
Summary: Manin, the devil hunting ninja title; it's a special grade of shinobi that hunt down the demons plaguing the world. Naruto, born of demon powers, is one such person gifted with a light that will save the world. Will he see the proper strength needed to destroy evil? NaruxSaku, SasuxTen
1. The Opening Act

**_Ever Ask Why the Devil May Cry_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Devil May Cry.

Alger: Welcome folks. You remember this right?

Yusei: This is Devil Hunters of Konoha, remixed to be a better version. Like before Naruto and Sasuke will possess the powers of Sparda as Vergil and Dante respectively and become the heroes who will save the world. To achieve this Naruto must...Well that's a secret.

Julia: Sasuke will possess Rebellion and Dante's gear and powers along with his own while Naruto will add Yamato and Nero's powers to his own; he may or may not keep it as he becomes stronger.

Takeshi: And now, without further adieu, we bring you this story.

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><p><em>I decided a long time ago that I would discover what it means to be strong, and the answer I've come across includes understanding others. You guys may be demons, but even a devil may cry if someone he loves hurts. <em>

A roar echoes throughout the village. Above them, a dark orange fox the size of a kaiju stands on all fours glaring down upon it, its nine tails flap viciously along the field behind; each thump to the earth flattens it. The demon fox with its iris slitted red eyes watches the movements of the humans around it, each one failing in their attempts to slay it.

"Nine-Tailed Biju!" speaks a voice it recognizes, glaring to his left at a giant toad his size. On top of it he sees a human, one with blond spiky hair and a white cloak with a flame pattern at the bottom. He draws an odachi katana before leaping ahead, running on air to reach the fox alone. He also raises his right sleeve, revealing a grotesque demon looking arm. It shines as he nears it, blinding everything. "I will take your sadness and hatred."

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><p><span><strong>Chapter 1: The Opening Act<strong>

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><p>"Naruto, where are you?!" shouts a red haired mother as she looks around the house for her only son. She checks behind the couch of their living room and the ceiling, before turning her eyes to his room.<p>

She opens his bedroom door, and sees a pair of shoes behind his curtains. Among the rest of the junk in his messy room. "Eh, might as well start by getting rid of this." She reaches for a comic book.

"NO DON'T!" She turns her eyes to under the bed, where she sees her son crawling out. "You said you would let me do it myself!"

"And you will, or else I'll start cleaning myself." She smiles before handing him his comic book, dropping it before him. "Now, get to work Naruto. I want this place clean for your birthday tomorrow. You're turning 10 after all."

"Hai, hai," he replies, getting to work on fixing his room. "Better work on my comics first incase I don't finish." Naruto sorts his comics away, placing them in drawers beside his shirts. As he reaches for his next book, his right arm twitches. "Ah! What was that?"

He touches his book again, only for nothing to happen. Ignoring it he gets back to work, only for it to go off again. This time the pain's much worse, and he doubles over. Blood oozes from the pours of his arm, hardening into a thick layer of skin; more comes out from his cheeks into three streaks each, like some animal cut him.

"Naruto?" His mother reenters the room, and looks in horror at her son's arm transforming. "Naruto!" She gets down to her knees and cradles her son's head. "Why? Why is this happening?"

"M-Mom..." These are his last words before he passes out, the arm finishing its hardening sequence.

She holds her son closer, lifting him in her arms as she rushes out the room and the house. "I can't believe this is happening... Naruto, I'm sorry for what will happen."

She passes by the hospital and reaches a high up tower. Upon entering, she passes by everything to get to the main office of the village leader, the Third Hokage. The old man lifts his eyes from his desk to spot the woman, saying, "Ah, Kushina. What may I..." he pauses however when he sees little Naruto in her arms, and the red case of blood over his entire left arm. "It's happening isn't it?"

"Yes," Kushina says with a grim and sadden expression. "I thought when he wasn't born with it he was spared, but it turns out it was time based. Which means, he'll have it after all."

"Kushina, it's not my place to say, but don't you think it would be beneficial to him if he-"

"No!" she shouts. "Naruto is not joining the Ninja Academy! I will not let him fall to the same fate that befell his father."

"But now that he has that arm he'll no doubt be in danger," he explains to her. "And with the loss of our Jinchuuriki, we need the power of one who can match them. You remember the warning he gave us."

Kushina bites her bottom lip. "My son is more important. Whatever it is, I'll face it myself."

"Kushina, you are still only one person. Even more, you've lost your powers." Kushina takes her son away, returning to their humble abode.

The mother lays her son in bed, staying at his side as he sleeps. The hours go by, and only through the fatigue brought upon from the rest of the day does she fall asleep. As she does however, the shelled arm cracks. The cracks spread all over the arm, cobalt light shining through. It eventually shatters into dust.

The next morning, Naruto awakens from his sleep. He grasps hold of his stomach, feeling empty. "Ugh. How long was I asleep?" He groans before getting up and going to the kitchen, moving quietly so his mom stays asleep.

As he reaches the kitchen he thinks back to last night. "Wait, didn't I pass out or something? I think it was..." As he was thinking he cups his chin with his right arm, which is when he realizes something's on it. He looks down at his hand, gasping when he realizes what's wrong; his entire right hand has changed into a demonic claw. His arm is engulfed in crimson skin thicker than anything he's ever touched, a sharp point coming from his elbow, and his five fingers and palm are glowing blue.

He stares at his hand for a few seconds, before opening his jaw to scream. Such a shout awakens his mother, who rushes to his side shortly after taking in the voice. "Naruto! Naruto!" She reaches her son, where she spots the arm he has taken up. She clasps her mouth shut, shocked at what she's seen.

"Mom," he turns around to face his mother, "what is this? What happened to my arm!?"

"Naruto..." Kushina lowers her hands as she nears him. "That arm, is your demon powers manifested."

"My...demon powers?"

"You're much more than just a human Naruto, like your father," she replies, leading him over to a chair to take this in. He sits down beside her, as she continues, "You have inherited demon powers, making you half a demon."

"A...a what?"

"Your father was a hybrid person too; he kept this a secret from everyone but me and the old man."

"Really? Dad's a demon?!"

"Partial demon. He was really specific about that." Kushina caresses his demon arm. "This was a manifestation of his demon powers, the Devil Bringer."

"Devil Bringer?" Naruto looks down at his arm, moving his fingers and flexing it.

"I'll teach you a genjutsu to hide it." Slowly, Kushina performs a couple of hand signs and holds out her arm, which transforms into a furry fox paw. "You remember how to concentrate chakra right?"

"Yes mom." Naruto performs the hand signs, before concentrating strongly. Eventually his arm reverts to being human again. He sighs in relief and flexes his arm out, seeing his fingers and flesh are back.

"I'm sorry this happened to you Naruto. I never wanted you to have powers," she tells him.

"But mom, I want to be a ninja."

"No!" she shouts, glaring at him. "No son of mine will become a ninja and end up like his father! You're better off living a normal live."

"MOM!" Naruto dispels the genjutsu and shows her his arm. "You think I can be normal with this? You told me before that there are people who can see chakra, so there's no point in being normal." Naruto then pouts, looking away with an angry expression. He walks into his room, ignoring his mother calling for him.

Kushina sighs as he stares at where he last stood. Thinking about herself younger watching Naruto leave, she begins to realize just how much they're similar. She wouldn't give up on something just because she was told not to. "Maybe he's right... They're already looking at our family..."

She coughs suddenly, holding her chest and mouth dropping to her knees. Her violent episode ends, and she looks down at the blood on her hands. 'It's becoming more frequent.'

Naruto shuts the door to his room, laying back in his bed with a scowl. His frustration at not being able to become a ninja, even though his dream is to become a strong man just like his father, he can't believe that's not going to come true just because his mom is being a jerk. "Is it really that bad that I don't become a ninja? What does she know?" He yawns as he passes out, falling asleep.

"More than enough." He opens in eyes in shock upon the voice, and looks up to see who talked. His eyes pick up his surroundings, which is revealed to be sewers. Dark and dank, he could detect the fowl stench polluting the air.

"Oh, I get it. It's a dream." Naruto laughs at his realization. "That's the only reason I could go from my room to here." He then hits an epiphany. "Wait, how would I realize that? And why can I smell this place?"

"This place is more than a dream." He hears footsteps splashing, coming towards him from down the hall. "This is your mind."

"My mind?" He glares ahead. "And who are you? My conscious?"

"You're pretty brave for a boy; you are indeed a part of this family." He looks behind him when the sound ends up coming from his 6 o'clock. His cerulean eyes see who's there, detecting silver flowing from his mop of a head he calls hair. He also spots blue on his figure. "You may just become stronger than anyone else before you, should you atleast train."

"Who are you?" The figure draws a sword, and rushes in at high speed stabbing him in the blink of an eye. Naruto's eyes widen in shock when he feels the pain; his eyes drift down to his heart where the steel sticks out.

"I do hope you understand sooner or later; power is everything, and without it you cannot do anything." The sword slithers inside of Naruto, merging with his form entirely.

Naruto gasps when he awakens, his breathing unnatural and hard. "What was that..."

He looks to his left arm when he feels something, and realizes he's gripping a large katana. Its handle is wrapped in white with a golden butt on the hilt sporting a beautiful design. Its purple scabbard has a gold ribbon wrapped around it inches below the guard of the same color. The sword's length extends past his arm, far too large for him to draw properly at his age.

"When did I get this?"

"Naruto." Kushina abruptly enters his room, and sees in shock the sword in his arms. She holds her mouth, horrified at its very existence. "Yamato..."

"Yamato?" He stares down at the katana.

"Naruto, you were right. I can't keep you from being a ninja anymore. Infact, I'll have no choice but to enroll you to the academy." Kushina goes to her knees, her hands never leaving her face. "I'll have you signed up by tomorrow."

"Y-You mean it?!" he asks in joyful shock. She nods, and he leaps up for joy. "Yatta! I'm finally gonna be a ninja!" He's so excited he doesn't notice the look on his mother's face. One of fear.

The next day Naruto enrolls into the Konoha Ninja Academy, with a full recommendation from the Hokage. The moment the doors open up everyone gets to introduce themselves.

"I am Kiba of the Inuzuka clan!" speaks fanged, brown haired youngster Kiba as he introduces himself. He stands up in the stands along with his peers, other students eagerly awaiting to become ninjas. "I like dogs, I hate cats and posers, and my dream is to become Hokage! That way I can show dogs the proper respect they deserve!"

Teachers Iruka Umino and Mizuki Zega laugh at his enthusiasm as they sit at desks before the stadiums. Iruka scratches his scarred nose and says, "Well, hope you mean it. There are lots of candidates aiming for that position."

Kiba grins and takes his seat. Mizuki picks up his list, which has two names left. "Okay, Sasuke. State your full name if we missed anything, your likes and dislikes, and what your goals are."

Sasuke stands up, being a black haired child whose spikes are slicked back. He gives a scary glare, before laughing. "If you're looking for Sasuke Uchiha, then you got him! I like spicy foods and a good challenge. I hate natto, and anything sweet. Yuck! And my goal is to become the strongest man. So that way I can change the rules of the world."

Mizuki and Iruka turn to eachother at that statement. They don't really understand what that means, or even believe he understands what that means. He's just a child now afterall, and his dream may change. 'Quite a statement though for an Uchiha,' Iruka wonders in his head.

He then notices allot of the girls have their eyes to him, and shrugs upon going to the next name. "Naruto!"

Naruto stands up tall, having a wide grin while adjusting his goggles. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki. I like ramen, especially the homemade ramen my mom makes even though that's all I eat, the color orange, and gardening. I hate sushi, the color purple, and tigers. As for my goal..." He takes a minute to think about it. "I want to find out what being strong truly means."

'Find out what it means to be strong... What an interesting goal.' Iruka smiles staring up at Naruto. "Alright, everyone take recess. We'll continue with the rest of in processing afterwards."

With that, everyone leaves out the stadium. Naruto goes out to the swings, where he sees a couple of other kids like him there; one such has a pineapple head for hair named Shikamaru, while the other is a chubby kid named Chouji. "Hi! I'm Naruto."

Shikamaru glares over at him. "I know. You're the guy who got caught painting the Hokage Monument last year."

He laughs and shrugs. "Yeah, that was fun. Wanna be friends?"

Shikamaru frowns, before huffing through his nose. "I don't care."

"Eh, why not? I'm Chouji!" says Chouji as he holds a hand out to him.

As they converse, Sasuke walks up to them. His eyes focus on Naruto, who only now realizes his presence. He looks back at him, saying, "Hey. You're Sasuke right?"

"Are you the moron who doesn't know what being strong means?" he asks him, a question Naruto glares at him for. "What kind of trainee wants to become a ninja without knowing what strength is? What, did you just automatically decide to become one for no reason?"

"I didn't join for no reason," he replies with a glare. "I don't need your approval."

"Really." Sasuke crosses his arms over his chest. "And I don't need a shinobi watching my back when he doesn't even know what he's aiming for! People like you die first on the battlefield!"

"What's that?!" Naruto glares at him.

"There's no way someone like you could defeat anyone in your way."

"What the hell is wrong with you? Why would anyone get into a pointless fight?"

"Subjugation. Conquest. The only form of expressing one's power is victory." He clenches his fists tightly. "What are you, a coward?"

Naruto, though initially calmer than an average person in this situation, snaps when he says that; he throws a punch straight him. Sasuke however catches it, and flips Naruto in the air. Naruto hits the ground with a thud, gathering the attention of everyone around them. "You don't know how to fight do you?"

Naruto grits his teeth in anger before getting up and rushing forward, throwing rapid punches at his target's face. Sasuke skillfully blocks them with marginal difficulty, before sweeping Naruto to the ground and kicking him over. "So, you still think I'm wrong?"

"Wow. Sasuke is so cool," speaks blond student Ino as she watches from the sidelines with a dreamy sigh. Her pink haired friend Sakura watches with intrigue.

Naruto growls disgruntled, holding his jaw as the taste of blood fills his lips for the first time. His eyes turn dark as he glares at Sasuke, who flinches when he notes it. With a yell, the blond child pushes himself feet first towards Sasuke, and kicks him straight in the stomach. The blow knocks Sasuke into the side wall of the school building, taking the wind out of him. Naruto then gets up and rushes forward, rearing his right fist back before throwing a straight punch that pounds Sasuke straight through the wall. Rubble crumbles apart from the impact, leaving a gaping hole in its place.

All the other kids stare in shock at what happened, including one white eyed girl with indigo hair. This child, Hinata, ruffles her lips while staring at the blond fighter.

Sasuke comes out from the rubble unharmed despite what happened. He brushes off dust and dirt, and glares at Naruto, his eyes turning blood red for a moment. The two face off, their eyes locked completely on one another's. Eventually, they rush forward yelling.

"WHAT IN THE HELL ARE YOU TWO IDIOTS DOING?!" These are Iruka's words as he comes in the moment they close in, and strikes them both in the back of the head. They hit the ground sliding, skulls impacting accompanied by a flat drop. "No fighting!" The two kids raise their head in pain, and laughter immediately erupts around them.

Elsewhere, the Hokage watches the entire scene from a crystal ball. Though he could understand the sudden strength Naruto unleashed, his surprise lies in Sasuke being able to handle it at his age. "Indeed. Those two may very well end up standing out the most. Their powers are already awakening."

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><p>Yusei: Alright, next up we move down the list. This Naruto will be one of the instrumental pieces to saving his world.<p>

Julia: Next chapter those kids graduate and tackle their first unofficial assignment.


	2. Graduation

_**Devil Hunters Remix**_

Disclaimer: Naruto is not owned by Kingdom Lightz. Devil May Cry too.

Kenshin: This time, the ninjas graduate.

Yusei: Is it good?

Kenshin: Nope.

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 2: Graduation<strong>_

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><p>"Alright, today we shall begin the graduation test," speaks Iruka as he takes out a clipboard with the names of all the students taking the test. He sits before the entire school, where the students now 3 years older than before await their test. Beside him Mizuki is ready to give the test too.<p>

"The first part of the test will include throwing weapons at targets. The second will include sparring against a fellow student, and the third will be performing the Bunshin no Jutsu to create three separate copies. Those who achieve perfect conditions for all three will graduate with honors, but you must pass two out of three events to graduate; if you understand now, head outside." After Mizuki's explanation everyone heads outside to wooden posts with target signs on them.

Everyone lines up behind one, holding one of five kunai knives and shuriken each. Among the first rows, Naruto and Sasuke are there. Naruto draws out his weapons and throws once the go is given, the former managing an eight out of ten while the latter Sasuke achieves a perfect score.

"Big deal; you got two more than me," Naruto says as he narrows his eyes to Sasuke with a scowl.

"One more is all I need. You're still weak." Sasuke throws his arm up and laughs. "Not bad for someone who still doesn't know what they want."

"Pretty big talk coming from a duck butt for a head."

"Big talk coming from a B-list bitch." The Uzumaki glares at him while Sasuke laughs, having gotten a good burn out of him.

"Those two are arguing again..." mutters Kiba with a scowl. "I can't wait to knock those two off their high horses."

Despite the rough start the two have had in the beginning, the two ended up becoming the best of rivals. Their massive improvement in being ninjas festered primarily due to the competition they held for one another. The two of them stand at the top of the entire class.

After everyone's done throwing tools, the next portion of the test begins. Iruka personally handles the candidates for sparring, making extra sure not to have Naruto and Sasuke fight eachother for obvious reasons. The first match begins with Ino Yamanaka, a blond girl who dons herself in purple clothes, and best friend/'love rival' Sakura Haruno. Though the two put up a good fight eventually Sakura wins by knock out. Though as Sasuke examines, he notices something strange about her.

The next match ends up being shades wearer Shino Aburame against Chouji Akimichi. Though off to a rough start, Shino overcomes Chouji's body stretching techniques using his insect friends; Chouji forfeits due to grossness.

The following match after that is Naruto and Kiba. The proud Inuzuka grins at his match up. "Yes! I was hoping to face against you! I'm gonna take you down a peg!"

"Try it; this is gonna be funny." Naruto clenches his left fist while grinning.

"You can do it Kiba!" Sakura cheers with a smile, before looking away scowling. She whispers to Hinata, "He can't do it."

"I heard that, forehead girl!" he shouts.

Sakura reacts angrily. "Sleep with one eye open!" Hinata shrinks in her seat, fearing her at the moment.

"Begin!" Iruka starts the fight.

"Shikyaku no Jutsu!" Kiba initiates a jutsu, getting down on all fours as he becomes more beastly. "Here I come!"

Kiba lunges forward claws drawn, and slashes at Naruto. He ducks to the left, avoiding him skillfully, before regaining his balance. He then draws from his back a smokebomb and leaves it hidden in his hand, while Kiba lands back on all fours. Naruto then throws it to the ground, and creates a screen that blocks his vision. "Nice try, but I can smell where you are; you're not getting away this time! Tsuuga!"

He spins around, having his claws scrape along the air to create a twister over him. Naruto stays still as Kiba comes closer, before moving in and sidestepping. He raises his right fist and pounds him into the ground as hard as he could, so hard he screams.

The impact blows away the smoke, revealing Kiba on the ground twitching and convulsing. Kiba passes out. Naruto bends down on his knees and pokes him in the face. "You okay?"

"GRAH!" Kiba rises up in a daze, his eyes rolled in the back of his head. Naruto pushes him to the ground, and he faints again.

"... I think that's a victory..." Iruka says as he sighs.

"Yeah, let's go with that." Mizuki adds before writing down the score. Iruka then gets up to check on Kiba, who has reawaken. Mizuki keeps a steady eye on him.

"Wow... Naruto really is stronger than he looks!" Ino says in amazement. "Still, Sasuke-kun is definitely no slouch."

"He's stronger no doubt..." speaks Sakura, curious to Naruto's strength as well.

"Next match up, Sasuke vs Tenka." The next match begins with black haired Tenka going up against the only person here stronger than Naruto.

"I forfeit," says Tenka, causing everyone to fall down. "What?! You think I'm going to fight against someone who can match the guy who punched out Kiba? That's a dumb idea."

"He's not wrong," Sasuke says with a shrug.

The next couple of matches go along smoothly, until all 10 duels were settled.

All twenty graduates come together for their last piece, making clones. Unfortunately only a small amount of the graduates were able to successfully summon three clones. Eventually they come together for their true graduation ceremony within the building.

Iruka takes out nine rolled up slips of paper, with a headband or hitai-e containing the Konoha symbol wrapped around it. "When I speak your name, come up and receive your diploma and hitai-e.

"Shikamaru Nara, congratulations." He hands his over to him, and after taking the diploma Iruka attaches the hitai-e to his head.

"Chouji Akamichi." Chouji receives his hitai-e and diploma.

"Ino Yamanaka. Congratulations for your honors." Ino smiles at the response. Sakura pouts at her gaining honors.

"Sakura Haruno, you receive honors as well for your satisfactory match against Ino, and for performing the Bunshin no jutsu better than everyone else." Iruka attaches the hitai-e to her forehead, And she blushes at the compliment.

"Sasuke Uchiha, you also receive honors. Congratulations." He gives Sasuke his hitai-e and diploma, who grins baring teeth.

"Naruto Uzumaki. Congratulations." Naruto notices what that means, and smiles while he receives his well awarded gifts. "When the graduation ends, you and Sasuke will report immediately to the Hokage."

"Eh?" The two look at one another, wondering why they've been decided for that.

"And to continue, Hinata Hyuga, congratulations." Iruka attaches Hinata's to her head.

"Kiba Inuzuka." He gives Kiba his hitai-e, but without a congrats he can tell he didn't make honors. After his big loss against Naruto he knew he couldn't.

"Lastly, Shino Aburame." Iruka gives his last diploma and hitai-e to Shino. "Congratulations on completing your basic ninja training, my nine graduates. For the rest of you, good luck next year." With that, all the graduates cheer proudly at their accomplishment, except Shino and Kiba. Their parents come in and congratulate their children for coming out of the academy.

"Naruto!" Kushina comes up and hugs her son the moment he's free, clenching him close in her arms. "You did it; you finally graduated!"

"Mom, let me go! You're embarrassing me!" he whines, feeling his image shattering.

Hinata watches Naruto being gushed over by his mother, and her cheeks turn red. 'So that's Naruto-kun's mother... She seems so much like him up close.'

"Hinata, pay attention!" speaks her father, the brown, long haired Hiashi Hyuuga leader of the Hyuuga Clan. "You're a ninja now; stand properly."

"Y-Yes father!" Hinata quickly turns her eyes from her object of affection.

"Well done, my son." Sasuke looks towards his mother. "I'm surprised you passed with honors, just like Itachi before you."

"Yes, thanks mom," he says, looking away rather embarrassed.

His mother Mikoto then turns to Naruto, who's conversing with his mom. "How long does he intend to hide it?"

"Hide what?" Sasuke asks.

"Nothing to concern yourself with, now." Mikoto then pats his son's shoulder, handing him a long and heavy box. He holds it up with ease however. "You have your meeting with the Hokage, with that boy."

"Naruto," Kushina begins as she stares into his eyes, "when you meet the Hokage I want you to behave yourself. And to take this." She holds up Yamato, and straps it around his waist. "Good luck; I'm so proud of you."

Naruto nods to her words, before going out towards the Hokage Tower. Sasuke follows after him, drawing his new item with him. The blond turns to his dark haired rival, asking, "What's that?"

"A family heirloom." Sasuke stares down at Naruto's katana. "And that?"

"Something I got from a dream."

"Huh?"

"Forget it." They continue towards the tower, with Naruto looking back when he hears something. He notes something hiding, and narrows his eyes while moving ahead. Eventually they reach the tower and enter, where both of them walk inside from the counter to the old man's very office.

Inside the old man sits in his chair looking out to the village from the windows. Naruto and Sasuke stand before him and bow. "At ease." They rise.

"So, old man shadow what's this about?" Sasuke asks as he brushes his hair.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun... Are you doing well after what happened?" Sasuke looks away at his statement.

"I'm fine."

"Good. I would hate to have you still be torn over what happened."

"What happened?" asks Naruto, being in the dark about what they're talking about.

"I have been expecting you two to grow into such strong young shinobi," speaks Sarutobi as he turns around. He adjusts the sheets of paper before him and holds the first one out to them.

"What's this?"

"This Naruto is for you two, to promote you to the secret rank of Manin, the Devil Hunting Shinobi."

"Devil what?" The two of them look at one another.

"I'm sure the two of you are familiar with your demon heritage." Naruto flinches at his statement, remembering what his mother said and his hidden left arm. But when he says this he turns to Sasuke, realizing that he means he has a similar origin like himself. Sasuke must be a half demon too. "Sasuke, I see you've brought Rebellion, and Naruto Yamato. Those weapons are the symbols of our village's two greatest demon hunting clans. Your fathers used those same swords."

"My father huh?" Sasuke looks over at the giant tool he's been carrying.

"Old man, is the only reason you called for us because we're half demons? Because, we're still fresh out of the academy. What if we're not good enough?" Naruto asks him.

"You believe you aren't?"

"No, but I was checking on your judgment," he replies with a smile. "Fighting demons will be a step in discovering what my true self will be."

"So, about this rank... What's the point? Aren't ninjas strong enough to handle demons on their own?" Sasuke adds in.

"Some of them yes, but we need members of our village whose sole mission is to handle them. Like how the ANBU are special ops, you two shall be specialists in this practice. Every village contains a Devil Hunter, and for the main villages they are almost always the Jinchuuriki. To match them, it's only right to have two special humans like yourselves work in this class."

"Jinchuuriki?" The two look at one another trying to understand what that means.

Naruto, wanting to put an end to the meeting, asks, "Is this all we need to know?"

"Just one more thing; you will have a third member join your team who was preapproved ahead of time. With that, you are free to go," replies the Hokage. "And remember, be careful. There will be times where you will face against oppositions normal ninjas of the rank of Genin would be unable to handle, and demons that your training isn't enough for. Such missions will be held off until you're ready, and for every mission until you achieve the rank of Chunin you will have to be accompanied by a Jonin who specializes in demon slaying."

'Well, it's nice to know they're not sending us into battles we can't handle...' Sasuke sighs inward and walks out the door.

Naruto watches as he leaves. Before he could go the Hokage leaves his final words. "Naruto, I heard what you said you wanted as a goal. Many people search their whole lives trying to find the answers to becoming strong. If you manage to find that answer, just remember one thing; always stay a good man."

His words bring a light to his eyes. 'No matter how strong I become, I must stay a good man? What does that mean?'

With this meeting over, Naruto leaves and goes back home. He looks up at his hitai-e and smiles. "Well, atleast I'm a ninja now. I can finally make mom proud."

Naruto looks up in the air to see shinobi leaping over rooftops, heading into the forests. "What's that about?" He rushes into that direction, curious about what's going on.

In the forest Naruto continues to run, until he sees someone hiding up in the trees. He holds a scroll in his hands. 'Hey, that's Mizuki! What's he doing with that?' "Mizuki-sensei!"

Mizuki flinches when he looks down, spotting Naruto waiting for him. "You! What are you doing here?"

"I'd like to ask you the same question." The teacher draws the large shuriken behind him.

"I'm so close in getting away. I won't let it be ruined by you!" He throws it at Naruto, who dodges to the side and avoids. It cuts down a tree.

"What are you doing?"

"Since I'm going to kill you anyway I might as well say it; I'm taking the Scroll of Sealing, and sell it!" he declares with a snobby laugh.

That's when it comes to him. "You're just some thug, a thief who wanted that."

"Not just some thief; I'm a double agent working for a rival village. Pretending to be some lame teacher for a bunch of brats paid off, because now I can leave! But first, I'll kill you."

"Try it." Naruto stands up, but he feels himself stuck. "What the hell?!"

"Sorry kid, but I gotcha!" Mizuki points to the ground, which reveals it has turned into a muddy swamp. "Doton: Yomi Numa no Jutsu! It summons a swamp that traps anyone who touches it. Which means I can do this; no escape kid!" He draws his second shuriken and throws it. "Kage Shuriken!"

The shuriken's shadow becomes a second one. 'Crap!' Naruto looks down at himself, before grinning. He still has a weapon. "Bet you didn't see this coming!" He picks up Yamato and blocks the attack, deflecting the shuriken back at a ducking Mizuki.

"What the?!" Mizuki shouts in shock. 'Wait a second... His weapon... If that's his father, then that sword must be the Yamato!'

Naruto sheathes his sword and moves his legs slowly, coming closer to hard ground. "I'll just kill him before he can get free!"

"Nice try!" From above, Sasuke lunges down at Mizuki and kicks him in the face. Around his back he holds the concealed Rebellion. "Hey Naruto, you look like you're having fun!"

"Sasuke, Mizuki's a traitor! He's-"

"Yeah, I overheard." He opens up the weapon and draws out his sword; it's a gray claymore with a skull head for a guard and two bones on the side tucked in. "Then I won't need to guess work what I have to do."

Mizuki stands back up from hitting the ground, gasping when he sees the sword in his hand. 'Rebellion!' "Why are you guys fighting me?"

"What's that?" Naruto states, as he and Sasuke await his response.

"You guys aren't humans. You're demons. There's no place for your kind in this village, so why bother helping it?" Mizuki begins, smirking when he notices their eyes twitching. "I'm taking this scroll for my master, a demon just like you. Join me and we can all have a better future guaranteed!"

Naruto turns to Sasuke, and they nod. Mizuki smiles. "So, do we have a deal?"

"The deal is, get your head out of your ass!" they both say in unison.

"Eh?"

"There's no way I'm giving up the place my mom calls home to work for some evil monster!" Naruto replies with the utmost confidence.

"I have something I have to do, and I will never work for what I have to destroy," Sasuke adds, aiming his sword forward. "That's all."

'Damn it, I'm screwed unless I do that...' Mizuki pulls out a kunai and stabs his arm with it.

"Whoa, whoa, what the heck are you doing? Killing yourself ain't gonna get you out of this!" Naruto states as he pulls himself free of the swamp.

"I offer my soul to summon the demon Raksha! Accept my offer and come to the human world, to destroy my enemies!" He raises his hand, which reveals a seal technique. The blood touches the writing and causes it to glow red. His body then transforms, becoming an orange furred man tiger. "I will not let down my master!"

Sasuke stares blankly at him. "Uh huh. So that happened."

Mizuki lunges forward at Naruto, who forces himself to block by raising his sword. He then draws his left arm back and punches him in the face, sending the tiger man in through a tree. Mizuki picks himself back up, shocked at what happened. "Did... Did that just happened?!"

"I don't know what you did, but it didn't change much about you," Naruto replies, before blowing a raspberry.

"Why you little!" The tiger roars angrily and charges at Naruto again on all fours.

'Time to test out that technique mom showed me.' Naruto holds his fingers in a style, but before he could use a technique Sasuke lands between them and deflects Mizuki's strike. His claws scrape down the length of Rebellion, snapping them off.

"I got this guy. It'll all be over in a second." Sasuke twirls his sword singlehandedly before slashing at Mizuki, sending him toppling backwards.

"In a second?! I'd like to see that!" Mizuki scratches along the earth as he rushes in to deal his final blow to Sasuke.

Holding it backwards, Sasuke slips past Mizuki swinging his weapon. The top half of the tiger demon hits the ground, the bottom still running until it hits the swamp. His blood gushes outward hitting trees and Naruto's face. "Ugh, yuck!"

"What? No! How is this happening?!" Mizuki grumbles as he struggles to move.

"Apparently you weren't smart enough to run away." Sasuke stabs him in the head, finishing him off. He pulls his sword free, blood squirting out on his shoes. "Takes care of that."

"Luckily he was a demon." Naruto wipes his face clean of blood. "But how are we gonna explain this to the old man?"

"We'll show him this." The Uchiha picks up the rest of his body after hoisting his sword on his back.

"... You seem to be taking your first kill very well."

"Meh. I never liked him." Sasuke drops Mizuki's corpse to the ground. "But forget that. Let's see what's inside this." He goes to the scroll and rolls it open, revealing the first technique. "Kage Bunshin."

"I already know that," Naruto replies, not at all against Sasuke reading from the scroll. Now that he thinks about it, he's taking the death of his jerkass teacher well too. His eyes peer down and he sees one technique though that intrigues him. "What's that?"

"It says 'Ch-" Before he could finish, several figures land in their area. They look around to spot they're the ANBU squad. "Uh oh."

"Alright, hands up," speaks the leader wearing a falcon mask. Naruto throws them up, but Sasuke tilts his head to the side.

Elsewhere, Sarutobi witnesses the events of the fight through a crystal ball. "This was a great first battle for both of them, especially with their resolves shown. He would be so proud of him right now."

* * *

><p>Lucas: That ends this chapter.<p>

Manabu: Alright, next up we got Naruto meeting his new teammate and an appearance from a DMC demon no one likes.


	3. Team Seven Formation

**_Ever Ask Why the Devil May Cry_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Devil May Cry. I do own a slowly growing reputation for making B plus fanfiction.

_**Chapter 3: Team Seven Formation**_

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><p>Darkness falls over the land. Everyone heads indoors as the wind picks up, despite the lack of rain. Naruto sits down in his favorite ramen bar enjoying his meal of miso ramen. "Nice time for weather."<p>

"Your sarcasm could use some work Naruto-kun," says Ayame as she wipes down a pot. "So, how was the ceremony?"

"It went great." He raises his head and smiles at her, despite noodles dripping from his mouth. "Me and Sasuke ended up becoming Manin."

"Manin? What's that?" she asks.

He slurps the rest of his noodles staring at her. "You don't know?" He's not that surprised though. She's a ramen chef so it's doubtful she would know anything about shinobi.

"Oh well... Anyway, I gotta meet up with my new team." Naruto rises from his seat, the rest of the noodles finished, and takes off. "See ya."

He looks back briefly to see her waving to him, and smiles back before taking off. The blond ninja hastily rushes to his former school building. He spots someone standing outside the entrance. "Sasuke?"

"Yo." Sasuke waves to him. Well, actually he just raises a hand to him. "You know anything about this jonin we're going to be under?"

"About as much as you," he replies, standing underneath a cover to block the rain. "Still, ninja cells are comprised of three genin and one jonin leading them. We're the rank of manin yet we're still genin, so who else is joining us?"

"Huh. Good point." He cups his chin while contemplating who their teammate could be. Most likely it could be someone from their class. "I hope it's someone I atleast know."

They wait for a while, time passing long enough for the skies to finish blowing. "Good. The wind went silent," Naruto mutters as he steps out from the cover. Yet the skies remain dark.

"Ah, you're both still here." Both ninjas turn around to see who was speaking, and spot a silver haired ninja standing by waiting. He has a hitai-e over his left eye and a mask over his mouth. "Yo."

"No yo!" Naruto points at him. "Are you our jonin?"

"That's right," he replies. "I am Kakashi Hatake."

The two look to eachother and then Kakashi. Naruto then asks, "Do you know who our third member is?"

Kakashi points upwards at someone staring down at them. The boys look up to see Sakura hanging upside down from underneath the steeple. She wears a crimson sleeveless top with black shorts barely reaching her knees underneath a gray apron skirt. She has red boots knee high and a tanto strapped around her left leg. Her hitai-e holds over her long, pink hair.

Her green eyes stare at Naruto and Sasuke. "Morning fellows."

"Sakura?" Sasuke speaks when he realizes its her. "What's with that outfit?"

"None of your business," she replies. Her feet detach from the top and she falls, flipping and landing before them. "It's just something I had put together for this moment. After all, you two look pretty snug yourselves."

"Well of course." Naruto shrugs. He himself has an orange tracksuit with blue highlights. He has blue boots matching his outfit with a light blue glove over his left hand. His hitai-e is present over his forehead and Yamato strapped on his right hip. Sasuke on the other hand is wearing a dark red high collared short sleeve shirt over black and crimson pants as well as matching toe shoes. "Your forehead is still large though."

Sakura immediately kicks him in the stomach, knocking the wind out of the poor boy. "Even after graduating you still say that?!" She then turns away with anger in her eyes. "This is why you can't measure up to Sasuke. He would never say something like that."

'Outloud...' Sasuke shrugs.

"So, I'm guessing you're all acquainted with one another," Kakashi says with his eye closed.

"What was your first clue?" Naruto jokes after standing.

"Huh." Sakura looks at him slightly surprised. "You got up so easily."

"Of course I did. All you did was kick me."

"Well, I guess I don't have to go through the trouble of you all introducing yourselves," says the Jonin before taking out an orange book and reading it. "So, you can tell me about yourselves."

The three ninjas look among eachother, before Sakura asks, "Couldn't you tell us yourself first?"

"Okay, sure." He lifts his eye from his book. "I am Kakashi Hatake. I have many likes, and just as many dislikes. I have no intention of stating my dreams for the future... And I have plenty of hobbies. Stuff like that."

They stare at him with narrow eyes. Sasuke leans back whispering, "What a douche. All he said was his name."

"Now, your turn." He walks ahead while reading his book, and the genin follow after.

Naruto cups his chin, deciding to go first. "First off, I am Naruto Uzumaki. I like ramen and my mom, and the special ramen my mom makes. I hate sushi, gross." He sticks his tongue out. "As for my dream... It's-"

"You wanna find out what it really means to be strong," Sasuke finishes for him. Naruto glares at him while Sakura giggles.

"Shut up!" He then looks at his left hand. "But yeah, that's my dream. As for hobbies, it's fun pulling pranks."

"Nice job," Sasuke states while stretching his arms upward. "I'm Sasuke Uchiha. Too many things are listed for my likes, but I'll throw in sushi, weapons and women; and not in that order." He glances to Naruto with a smug grin, who glares. "I have a bit of things I dislike, including demons. My dream...I am going to restore my clan, and hunt down the demon that killed my family."

Sakura and Naruto look at him in surprised. The latter remembers hearing about his family massacre and was told a powerful demon killed them. 'But if it was a demon, why didn't it kill him and his mother too?' Sakura smiles at his statement however, looking to the side.

"As for hobbies... I guess pissing off Naruto is a good one." The blond growls immaturely, and Sakura laughs.

Kakashi shakes his head, chuckling under his mask. The lone girl of the group then goes on with her introduction. "I'm Sakura Haruno. I like strong men who aren't afraid of standing up for themselves."

'Of course...' Kakashi rolls his eye. 'Girls her age this day only care about boys now over ninjutsu.'

"I hate anyone or anything pretending to be good and holy when they're not; basically phonies. My dream..." She touches her bottom lip with one finger. "I guess, finding my place in the world."

'Her place in the world?' Both of the boys look at her wondering what this means.

"Hobbies? Working on my hair. You know, making it nice." As she finishes Kakashi comes to the park, and subsequently sits on a bench. "What are we doing here?"

"It felt like a nice change of pace." Kakashi turns the page of his book and grins under his mask.

'What the hell's he reading?' Sasuke looks over at the book he's so into.

"Anyway, with this we'll begin our first mission tomorrow morning." Kakashi puts his book away and takes out three sheets of paper. "The details are on the paper. Also, try not to lose your lunch."

With that, he disappears in a puff of smoke. After reading the details, Naruto tucks it in his shirt and runs off. Sasuke watches him leave, before crushing the paper and pocketing it. "Whatever."

Sakura reads the paper to herself. 'Tomorrow morning at 8 get to Training Grounds 27. There all three of you will face a group of demons you should be capable of handling. One demon will stand out and be the main focus; the one who kills it will be able to move on to the next level of training.' With that out of the way she tucks in the paper within her shirt. "Well, that's that. I'm going to get something to eat." Sasuke roams over throwing an arm around her. "Hm?"

"So, how about me and you get something to eat together?" Sakura grins at his response.

"Oh, putting the moves on me are you?" She lifts his arm off of him. "Maybe someday."

He watches as she walks away, shrugging. "Oh well. I'll see you tomorrow then, babe."

With their new mission present on their minds the day goes by smoothly. The blackened skies fade away soon, giving way to the bright blue. The sun opens up for the bright morning, wind keeping the dawn company. Sasuke makes it to the scene first, wearing his previous outfit from the day. He leans against a tree at a training ground just outside of the village.

Before long Naruto comes up to join him. "Hey."

"Hey." He tosses a banana over to him. "Eat up."

"Nah, I don't eat those." He throws it back, and proceeds to opening an orange before chowing down.

"But you'll eat those? Bah!" Sasuke swallows the fruit meat before tossing away the peel. Naruto grabs it however and pockets it. "What the hell are you up to?"

"Prank."

"Like anyone's gonna fall for the banana peel trick." Sasuke leans back on the tree with his arms behind the back of his head.

"Hello boys." Sakura arrives on the scene, her hair blowing in the wind. "Hope you don't lose your lunch today."

"We haven't had lunch yet, stupid," Naruto replies, earning him a kick to the shins.

"Learn how to speak to women, dumbass!" Sakura glares at him before turning away. He recovers rather quickly though.

Naruto sighs and looks around, ignoring the fleeting pain in his leg. "Should have showed up later. Atleast then he wouldn't be so late." He glances at Sakura staring off. "What? Is he finally here?"

"No." She erects herself and draws the tanto. "But we do have company."

"Eh?" He and Sasuke look over in the direction she's staring. Far off they spot a brown simian with glowing eyes glaring at them.

"Is that one of them too?" Sasuke asks, pointing up in the nearby trees at more of them. "There's allot of them. Demons?"

"Yeah." Sakura takes out a notebook and opens it, revealing a drawing of them next to kanji and katakana. "Msira. These are demons that feel off of greed and savagery."

Naruto tilts his head to Sasuke. "Hey, you don't think-"

"So this is our test huh? A bunch of weaklings like these would be good." The Uchiha draws Rebellion. "Let's have some fun then!" The Msiras snarl before lunging in at them. Sasuke ducks underneath one before kicking a follow up, flipping it in the air, before slashing it in two. He kicks the one earlier up to his level and headbutts it into a tree.

Naruto rears his left fist back and punches one Msira in the face. His force is so strong its flesh and eyes come flying off. He then grabs a set of shuriken and throws two forward at one Msira far away, robbing it of its eyesight. He pulls Yamato from his waist and jabs the demon in between the shurikens using his sheathed weapon.

Three Msira jump at Sakura from behind. She flips over and avoids them, hoisting herself on both arms. She then twirls herself, kicking the demons away while also releasing kunai from her boots that pierce into the monsters. Bringing herself upright she dashes in and slashes the demons' heads off using her tanto. One tries to sneak at her from the side, which she sends flying with one punch.

With the last one dealt with, all the demons dissolve into blood. Naruto bends his knees to examine it. "Do they always dissolve?"

"Yup," Sakura tells him. She then tenses up, looking forward to see something coming their way. "Uh oh. We're not done."

"We're not?" Naruto asks, before he realizes what she means. Up from above they spot a giant demon gorilla landing before them. "Damn."

The gorilla demon brushes its black mane mocking of a lion as its tail hits the ground. It pounds the dirt using its large fists before roaring.

"That must be the one we have to take out to pass. Then this is my kill!" Sasuke rushes in and stabs at the monster, missing when it flips in the air. It comes over at Sakura to grab her, but she ducks under and the demon is struck in the face. This causes it to lose focus and hit the ground with a loud thud. Naruto swings, striking the demon in the head with his scabbard. The demon responds by punching him into a tree.

"Naruto, draw your sword!" Sasuke tells him.

"I don't need to, for something like this." Though he says it, he wishes he could just draw his sword and cut it in two.

Rolling his eyes, Sasuke performs several seals. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" He blows out a huge fireball towards the demon. It breathes in deeply and blows out a ball of wind that disperses the flames. "Damn it!"

It then slams the ground, releasing a shockwave that forces Sasuke to jump forward at it. But it back hands him away towards Naruto. Sakura jumps over to join them. "This isn't going well."

Naruto grabs Sakura's hair pulling her back. "Hey, what the hell are you doing?!"

"I have an idea." His words grab their attention. "Neither of us are strong enough to handle it on our own, so we'll have to work together."

"What, like teamwork?" Sasuke asks him as if it wasn't obvious.

"What makes you think we'll do better together?" Sakura adds. "It still took on my hair and stayed in one piece."

'Your what?' "Because despite how it looks, it's still just one thing."

Sakura and Sasuke look to eachother thinking about it. She then asks him, "Are you sure your plan will work?"

"If not then I'll apologize for what I did," she replies to him.

"Let's do it!" she immediately says.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto makes a cross seal, summoning three copies of himself. He rushes in after the demon transforming two of them into a fuma shuriken before opening up and throwing them. The gorilla deflects them with ease and charges after him.

The clones turn back and land on the beast's back, though it doesn't slow down a bit. They place paper tags on its back and jump off, which explode seconds later. The force causes it to lose balance and the two Narutos in front of it dip to the side.

Sakura rushes in as it's distracted and kicks it in the back of its head; her strike plants it in the ground. Sasuke then throws Rebellion, impaling it in the mouth. The demon roars expelling blood, the sword stuck in its throat. "What the hell?"

"Yeah, that happened. Let's go guys!" The clones grab Naruto and throw him forward at the gorilla demon. He hits the Rebellion using his left arm and pushes out through the beast's throat with it. The monster clutches its throat while trying to breathe.

Rebellion sticks into the ground while Naruto rolls on the ground. The gorilla growls while trying to control its bleeding. "It's still trying to move..."

"Alright, let's cut it down at once," Sasuke says before grabbing Rebellion. Sakura draws her tanto and Naruto pulls out a kunai.

The three rush in as the beast tries to heal its throat, and though out of synch they slash it. Naruto slices the right eye, Sakura cuts the stomach and gets covered in blood, and Sasuke lops off its left arm. The beast falls backwards bleeding, and all three ninjas land carefully. Breathing hard a bit, they cheer out realizing they won. Naruto shouts out, "Alright!"

"About damn time it went down," Sasuke complains before kicking it.

"Well, congratulations on your victory." All three look behind them to see Kakashi sitting on top of the demon's body.

"You're late!" Naruto shouts at him. "Where the hell have you been?!"

"Watching you guys," he declares while staring at the fallen demon. "This was a part of your training after all, so I had to make sure you wouldn't get killed."

"What?" Sasuke looks down at the demon. "You sent this?"

"No, but they're native to this training ground," he replies as the demon dissolves. "Training Ground 27 is used for beginner manin, because the demons that tend to inhabit it are just that weak."

"But this guy was strong as hell. It took us working together to defeat it," Sakura tells him.

"Exactly, and that was the basis of this exercise; teamwork." The three look to eachother curiously. "I've been working with genin before, and to have manin to look over has been a first. You guys have been able to understand the point of my first training exercise before any of them."

"But what's so great about teamwork? We don't really need that," Sasuke tells him.

"Yes, you do." Kakashi looks at them harshly. "Whether you're a genin or a manin teamwork is important, because you're at all times a part of a team. The sooner you realize that the better off you'll be."

"Sensei," Naruto begins, "how exactly is this a training exercise to increase teamwork? The message said the first one to destroy the demon would win."

"That was part of the trick. Of course you wouldn't be able to defeat a monster of that level on your own. It was a test to see if you can work together by putting away your best interests. After all, individual prowess is one thing but teamwork is more important when you're together as a group. Especially if one of you is so foolish to get kidnapped because of individual actions and you have to make hard choices."

Naruto takes a moment to think about that. 'That... That makes sense.'

"Rather intelligent..." Sasuke even admits it. 'I never would have figured it out right away.' He then looks at Naruto. 'Did he notice it? Or was he certain we couldn't win alone?'

"So with that, congratulations. I guess I won't have to worry about you three in missions." Kakashi closes his eye, something they recognize as him smiling.

'Working together...' Sakura looks to the boys with a scowl. 'I guess, for now. But when I become strong enough on my own I'll be able to slay anything on my own.'

Elsewhere in the village, Kushina exits a grocery with a bag full of goodies. "I'll make some stir fry instead of ramen."

"Oh, Kushina!" speaks the Hokage as he strowls along the streets before her. "Nice to see you're doing well."

"Of course!" she declares proudly, delivering a bow in respect. "I mean yeah, the pain has started to lift even though I still can't produce chakra, but I'm fine. I don't regret anything from that day..."

Though she says it, Hiruzen could tell she's slightly depressed. He's also started to notice her complexion has been taken away. "So, what can I do for our perverted Hokage today?"

He flinches for obvious reasons. Tentatively, he asks, "How is Naruto with his powers lately?"

"Good so far. He hasn't had any problems lately." Kushina smiles thinking about her son. "He still can't draw Yamato though."

"I see. Well, good day then." Hiruzen blows out of his pipe before walking on. "Oh, by the way, you'll probably like this; his instructor is Minato's former student Kakashi."

Shocked, she asks, "Really?" 'A bit of a coincidence... Doubtful.'

* * *

><p>Yusei: That ends this chapter. What's up next?<p>

Manabu: Next time, Team Seven gets their first mission. A DMC villain makes its appearance too.


	4. Red Hot Juice

_**Ever Ask Why the Devil May Cry**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Devil May Cry.

_**Chapter 4: Red Hot Juice**_

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><p>It's mid day. Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura come to three trees and hide behind it. Tapping the wireless radio on his head, Kakashi speaks to them. "Have you located the target?"<p>

"Five kilometers," Sasuke replies.

"Take it!" All three converge on the target, with Naruto reaching out to grab it.

"Gotcha-AAAAH!" The cat scratches his face violently.

As it does Sakura examines the feline and notes the red ribbon on its left ear. "Red ribbon. We got her."

"Good work." Kakashi sighs looking up. 'I'm going to miss these peaceful days.'

After collecting the cat they bring it back to the Hokage's main office. There the daimyo's wife, a plump lady, comes to 'collect'. "My dear sweet Tora!" She hugs it, and the kitty struggles to break free. "Oh, I'm so glad you're safe! Momma will never let you out of her sights again!"

Naruto snickers while rubbing his bleeding face. 'That's what you get, stupid cat!'

'So that's why it left.' Sakura shakes her head.

"Alright, let's see what else we got..." Hiruzen examines other jobs for the genin to carry out. "For Team 7 we have babysitting an elder's grandson, planting new plants in Training Ground 44, and-"

"Excuse me," Naruto begins, calling out the Hokage's attention. "How the hell long are we going to have to do this crap? It's been 3 weeks, and all we've done since becoming ninjas are picking up garbage, cleaning up the weak demons hounding the training grounds, and catching pets! It sucks!"

"I fully agree," Sasuke adds. "Even the demon slaying missions are filled with weaklings."

"I hate these dumb missions too!" Sakura voices her opinion too.

"You three be quiet!" Iruka shouts, getting up out of his seat. "You may be manin but you're all 12 year olds still of the genin rank! Which means you will be treated as such!"

"Besides," the Hokage begins, "we have not yet received any missions that desires your demon hunting requirements. And even if we did we couldn't send you on a mission to hunt down a B class demon."

"B class?" Naruto repeats. "What's that?"

"What?" Sakura slaps him in the back of the head. "You're a manin and you don't even know that?" She then takes out a notebook. "Demon rankings are the same as ninja mission rankings. They go from D, C, B, A and S with D the lowest and S the highest."

"Correct," Kakashi says, causing her to smile from the praise. "So like how you can only do D and C rank missions, you also can only handle C ranked demons. The gorilla demon I sent for our first training was only a C class at the most."

"And you think we can advance to stronger missions when all we can do is this? They're all just lame D ranks!" Naruto shouts.

The Hokage sighs while Kakashi punishes him. "That is true..." He then grins. "Well, you are good to taking one C class should you complete at least ten D class missions. Once you finish one more you should be ready."

Hearing that Naruto calms down, before grinning. "Yes! Alright, now I got something to look forward to!"

Both Sakura and Sasuke nod in response, knowing how nice it feels. Kakashi smiles, before saying, "We will accept the planting mission."

With that, Team Seven leave out to deal with their current mission, planting a new tree in Training Grounds 44. Once they reach it, they realize it's concealed behind a fence.

Kakashi says, "This is Training Grounds 44, also known as the Forest of Death. This place is used for the Chunin Exams when we host them, and was a special training place for the Shodaime Hokage."

"Wow..." Naruto smiles when he hears that man's name. After all, the Shodaime has been renowned as the God of Shinobi, one of the founders of Konoha and one of the greatest examples to follow for a beginning ninja. Not to mention according to his mother she holds a close connection to him. "That's so awesome." He goes to the front gate and opens it up.

'I guess he likes the Shodaime Hokage.' Kakashi chuckles lightly as he and the team enter the forest. "Now, once we enter we need to be quick. Do you have the plant?"

"Got it." Naruto holds up the plant. "Where are we going?"

"This way. Follow me." He leads them into the forest quickly. They each pass by a set of large animals on the way, including bears and beastly insects. Soon they come to a torn down tree.

"What happened here?" Naruto wonders as he stares at the destroyed tree.

"Sometimes jonin come here for training," Kakashi tells him. "It's a shame too... This was a very old tree, lasting ever since the Shodaime's legacy."

Naruto places a hand on the tree, his right hand, and a light shines from it. 'Huh?' He blinks feeling something fill his heart, drawing his hand away. 'What was that?'

"Let's get to work." Kakashi initiates a jutsu. "Doton: Shinji Zanshu no Jutsu!" His technique submerges the remains of the tree underground. "This will provide fertilizer for the earth."

Sakura grabs the roots of the stump and uproots it. That leaves the ground fresh and soft. But then a lot of hornets fly out from the stump. "Sasuke!"

"Got it! Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" Sasuke releases flames to incinerate the insects within seconds. He then takes the fertilizer and litters the ground with it. "Naruto, your turn."

"Gotcha." Naruto plants the tree into the dirt, before watering it. "There..."

"That was really short for a mission," Sasuke mutters.

"There are more trees to plant." Kakashi pulls out a scroll and draws out more potted plants. "Now that you know how to plant trees this will go easier."

"Eh?!" After another grueling hour they finish planting the rest of the trees. They then leave out the training ground covered in dirt.

After collecting on their mission they gather together outside of the main building. Kakashi tells them, "After finishing this last mission we've done 10 D ranks."

"Yes!" Naruto shouts before grinning. "So, we can go on a C mission?!"

"Tomorrow. For the day you are dismissed," he says to them. "Prepare to leave the village tomorrow morning at eight." He then disappears in a puff of smoke.

"Oh good, time to myself," Sasuke mutters before stretching. "Once I shower I'm heading out to town."

"Whatever." Naruto watches as he leaves, and takes off on his own. 'Everything's going so slow. It's starting to piss me off.'

"Oh well..." Sakura takes out a case, opening to reveal a pair of black frame glasses.

"Eh? You were glasses?"

"Of course. Why else would I carry them? Contacts only do so much before you have to remove them." She pokes the contacts out from her eyes and throws on her glasses before exchanging a new case for her contacts. "Doesn't it fit? Beauty with brains?"

"More like brawn with brains." Sakura kicks at him for his remark, and he blocks once again. "Not falling for that again."

"Whatever." Sakura leaves him behind, going home.

Naruto looks into the skies, noticing how dark it has gotten. "Eh, better head home too." Taking off in a sprint, the blond ninja makes it home in less than two minutes. There he finds his mom fast asleep on the couch.

"So quiet..." He notices she has a book in her hands and a blanket over her. "Must have been doing something. Eh, I can cook myself."

He pulls the cover up to her neck before going into the kitchen. There he fixes his own meal of stir fried noodles with vegetables and shrimp. Though when he tries it, he can only say, "Mom's still better."

By tomorrow morning the members of Team Seven gather by the village's front gates. Kakashi looks on noting Sakura brushing her hair, Naruto stretching and yawning, and Sasuke reading a magazine featuring a princess. It reads 'Ten year anniversary since Princess Kazahana has disappeared from Snow,' though he's busy reading about an assortment of weapons.

"So, I believe you're all ready, correct?" Kakashi asks them, and they agree. "Good. The mission today is to procure an artifact from a location surrounded by demons. As they are relatively C class this is a mission we can complete. Our target location, within the Land of Whirlpools."

"Wow, that's far," Sakura says. From what she remembers they would be going all the way east to the ocean to an island just off the coast.

"Yup. It's the perfect mission for two half demons and an Umbra Witch."

"Umbra what?" Sasuke raises his head from his magazine.

"A-Anyway, let's get moving!" Sakura pushes ahead going out the village. "We gotta find this whatever-it's-called."

The boys look at her suspiciously. The blond shrugs and moves ahead ignoring all, followed by Sasuke and then Kakashi. Moving at a steady pace they reach the borders of the Land of Fire until reaching the ocean. Taking out a map Kakashi examines the area.

"We're here. It's just a few miles down." The jonin then glances over at a nearby boat. "We'll use that to cross the river."

"What is this place like?" Naruto asks him. "The Land of Whirlpools. I've heard of it before, but I can't remember."

"Well, you should. This is where your mother used to live." His eyes widen at what the jonin tells him. He always knew his mother wasn't from Konoha, but to hear that they're going to where her home was is something he wants to know. Plus there's something about how he said 'used to', like something happened.

Sakura and Sasuke push the boat out to sea with Naruto and Kakashi on it, before climbing aboard just as it leaves shallow ground. As the genin peddles, the jonin thinks about something. "That's right; I should teach you water walking someday."

"Water what?" Sasuke asks as he peddles.

"He means the technique in which ninjas stand up on water," Sakura explains.

"That might be helpful..."

Eventually Team Seven reaches the island, though from a quick glance neither of them likes what they see. After docking they take a better look at the only apparent village on the entire island, nothing but unexplained ruins and destruction. Naruto agapes at what he sees. "What is this place?"

"This is the Land of Whirlpool's sole village, Uzushiogakure." Kakashi looks down at the rubble by his feet. "You see Naruto, you come from a long line of fuinjutsu specialists. The Uzumaki are closely connected to Konohagakure and the Shodaime Hokage's clan, and their clan design is even integrated into our uniform." He shows the symbol on his vest, which is a spiral. The same design exists on Naruto's clothing.

'Oh, so that's why mom gave me this suit!' Naruto smiles as he absorbs more of his heritage.

"So, what happened to them?" Sasuke inquires.

"They were wiped out." His answer, though they could tell it was obvious, to hear it is still a shock. "Their techniques were feared by every other clan since they were capable of sealing even demons with ease. They were attacked in the midst of the Shinobi World Wars, wiped out some time after the settlement of Konohagakure."

Naruto sighs hearing that. 'I feel so bad for mom...'

"Our objective should be up ahead." Kakashi points to a collapsed building up ahead. "Naruto, go up ahead with Sakura and seek out the item; it's a white oni mask."

"Mask..." Naruto heads to the building with Sakura.

After they left, the ground begins to shift. From the earth a tower of flames bursts, and both remaining members jump away to avoid it. The flames die away, revealing the molten form of a giant arachnid demon. Its spider form crawls out from the lava around it as its eight eyes take focus on the prey that it believes would be Team Seven. It inches further, focusing its eyes on Kakashi.

"Ah! Another small one," it complains, shatter its head with disappointment. "I came here because I sensed something bigger, but this is just disappointing."

"Well, well, well, look what we got here guys." Sasuke goes to the spider and taps the gray part of its front legs. "I bet you think you're pretty tough, do ya boot stain?"

"Boot stain?!"

"And there it is..." Kakashi groans at Sasuke's insult. Though inwardly he's slightly worried. This demon is different from what usually lives on the island.

"You puny pathetic thing! I'll step on you like an ant!" They jump backwards to avoid his swipes.

'He's made of lava so I doubt fire's going to work.' Sasuke reasons this as he looks at the giant spider, before taking out Rebellion. He slashes, but the strike ricochets off its rock hard skin. "What? He's hard as stone!"

"Sasuke, stand back! I got this." Kakashi gathers electricity to his hand, which shoots out to strike the spider in the form of a wolf. "Raiton: Raiju Tsuiga!"

"Pathetic!" The spider shoots a fireball from his mouth at the wolf, blowing away both it and Kakashi. He explodes, revealed to be a stump of wood. "You won't get away from me boy! Nobody makes a fool of General Phantom!"

Both Sasuke and Kakashi can be seen in hiding, watching the spider walk and scan the environment. The jonin points over to their left, to which the Uchiha nods. They prepare to make their move, but then they hear a shout. "Hey!"

Standing on top of tall rubble Naruto balances himself staring at the demon. "What did you do to my teammates you giant boot stain?!"

"Oh that's it!" Phantom's abdomen opens up, uncurling into a molten scorpion tail. Its front tendrils open up into pincers, and it lunges at him. Naruto flips backwards avoiding him, throwing shuriken at it that only end up either being deflected by its hardened covered skin or melted by the lava that is revealed to be its flesh.

Naruto ducks to the left avoiding its tail, and grabs it. But he lets go when it burns into him. "Ah!"

"You don't touch a demon with molten skin dumbass!" Sasuke shouts rising up from his hiding spot.

'Ugh...' Kakashi facepalms at the situation turning against them. But his seriousness turns back when he sees Naruto being stabbed. "Naruto!"

Fortunately, that Naruto turns into smoke and calms the jonin. "Trickster."

"Why that little..." Phantom digs its head into the ground, making pillars of flames shoot up. Sasuke leaves his hiding spot upon compromise, drawing Rebellion from his back. He slashes at the demon, who blocks with his hardened feet. Sakura comes in from hiding to punch it in the side, only to fail when it kicks her back.

"It's no good. We can't hurt it..." Sakura gripes.

Phantom laughs before breathing flames at everyone present. All three jump away, leaving Kakashi to rush in and stab the demon in one of its eyes. Lava bleeds out from his wound, burning away Kakashi's right hand glove and causing him to get away. "Damn lava. Even if we do hurt it it'll still hurt us."

"Time to say good bye kiddies!" Phantom fires in the air, and balls of flames rain down to attack everyone.

"Oh no. Doton: Doryuheki no jutsu!" Kakashi makes walls of earth to block the flames, protecting everyone but Sasuke who was out of range. "Sasuke!"

"Sasuke!" Without thinking, Naruto rushes in his direction. He pushes him aside and gets hit by the fireball. 'My body... Why did it just move on its own?'

"Naruto!" Everyone looks to Naruto, whose back has been exposed from the flames. Sasuke stares on with pure shock in his eyes, surprised by all measures on Naruto running up and saving him. For whatever reason, despite the two of them always at eachother's throats, he did something like this for him without hesitation.

"And now, you're next!" Phantom leaps in the air to land down upon Sasuke. Giving a dark glare he takes hold of Rebellion and slashes, knocking the spider away on his back. "What?!"

"Take this!" He rushes in and stabs the spider in his mouth. Lava gushes from his throat splashing onto Sasuke. He cries out in pain as the lava melts parts of his flesh, before making a quick swing slicing off the right part of Phantom's mouth. The demon flips over on his feet and charges up another fireball. Sasuke simply throws a kunai dead center into his throat, causing smoke to explode out instead.

The sudden explosion causes more parts of his body to open up, exposing lava. The demon coughs out blood and steps back, into the eyes of the Uchiha. 'Those eyes...' He burps up lava directly into the earth, burrowing through into a tunnel.

Sasuke sighs with relief at their victory, falling down to his knees. The burns on his flesh disappear slowly, just like Naruto's. "What the heck was that..."

"I don't know... Are you two okay?" Kakashi asks as he moves towards them.

Naruto sits up, checking his burnt clothes. "My back was burning, but I feel better now."

"You guys okay?" Sakura asks checking the Uchiha's burn spots. "You're healed? But I saw lava hit you in the face!"

"I'm partially demon, just like this suicidal tangerine." He then glares at Naruto. "What the hell were you thinking jumping in the way of that attack like that?"

"I..." He looks to the side. "I don't know what that was about... My body just moved on its own."

"Naruto, Sakura, did you find the mask?" Kakashi asks them.

"Yeah." Sakura pulls out the mask from her shirt; it's a white oni mask with curled fangs. "I can't believe we risked our lives for this."

"That spider doesn't normally live here." says the jonin as he takes out a scroll. After unraveling he seals the mask inside. "Well, atleast mission accomplished. Let's get back home."

The ninjas leave the ruins, Naruto looking back with fondness.

As the team exit the island, the ground melts away into a hole. From it rises a squat bull of a man whose stance betrayed of a flame blazed beneath him. His octopulet eyes meld into an abomination of bloodlust and hatred, befitting for a demon such as him snarling insect fangs. "I'll get him. That boy won't escape my flames of revenge!"

* * *

><p>Manabu: That ends this chapter. I think we did better this time.<p>

Yusei: Next time Team Seven enters their newest mission; they're goin' to Waves.


	5. Mission to Waves

_**Ever Ask Why the Devil May Cry**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Devil May Cry.

_**Chapter 5: Mission to Wave**_

* * *

><p>"Naruto, I made your favorite ramen!" Kushina says as she invites her son into the kitchen.<p>

Opening his eyes, Naruto quickly moves out of his room to meet with his mom. He sits in the living room with fork and spoon in hand, rapidly tapping the table with eager anticipation to get the delicious meal his mother always makes him.

His mother comes out with a big pot steaming with the delicious smell he loves ever so, until looking on to see a fried egg with other ingredients inside. "What's this?"

"Naruto I told you before, if I'm going to make ramen for you atleast I'm going to try new things with it. You won't get any nutrients if you don't eat right!"

"Mom, I don't eat ramen all the time," is his response. Hers is to glare at him, a deep red flare evolving that frightens him.

"Yes, you do. I can barely get you to eat fruit! Why do you think you're so short?!" Naruto hangs his head in response. "You resemble your father only in appearance I guess. He was short too back then."

"Didn't you say dad became a genin when he was ten?"

"AND a manin!"

"And that he would always stare and watch you from afar before he got the guts to save you?"

His mother swoons. "Yes. He made such amazing accomplishments when he was younger than you."

As his mother goes on about his father, Naruto pokes the egg with his chopsticks. "Is this cooked right?"

"If you don't like it, don't eat it!"

"I didn't say that!" Naruto quickly picks out food from the pot into his bowl before he and his mother start praying. "Itadakimasu!"

Before he could finish, there's a knock on the door that takes away their attention. "Naruto, go get that."

"Eh?"

"Since you question my cooking you wouldn't mind waiting a little more!" Naruto sighs at her statement, going to the door. Opening it he finds Kakashi standing at the door.

"Kakashi-sensei?"

"Is that Kakashi-kun?" Kushina comes out from the dining room to see Kakashi.

"Naruto, I was hoping to catch you here," he says, turning his eyes to the blond child. "Our next mission is ready."

"Eh?" Naruto looks up slightly surprised. "Already?"

"We leave tonight at 1900. Pack for a five day trip and come to the main office." He then leaves.

"Ah man..." Naruto complains, checking the time to see it's already 6 p.m. "I'll take that meal to go mom."

"You better!" She goes to the dining room and begins packing up ramen with a large bit of the extra vegetables and beef strips inside.

Meanwhile, Naruto continues to pack away his stuff for the mission despite not knowing what he's doing or where he's going. He gets enough to finally leave out, going to the front door. "I'll be back mom!"

"Be careful Naruto!" she calls out, and he waves back before going out.

The blond ninja races to the tower, where he finds Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi already waiting for him. "I'm here! What's the mission this time?"

"Apparently we're babysitting an old man," Sasuke tells him, pointing to the tanned senior civilian drinking liquor just off the side.

"Huh?"

"He's our client." Kakashi steps in staring over to him. "Tazuna has hired us to escort and protect him on his way home to a village in the Land of Waves."

"That's right!" Tazuna speaks with a cocky grin. "I'm the super talented bridge builder Tazuna! All you guys have to do is ensure my safety until I finish my bridge. Though I don't if that's possible if all you got are a bunch of kids, including some midget who just showed up."

Naruto grits his teeth glaring at him. "Who are you calling short?! I'm average height for a kid my age!"

"Yeah, for a girl." Tazuna ends up laughing, and gets even Sasuke to join in. "But even pinky here's taller than you!"

That gets Sakura laughing, making Naruto punch the ground with his left fist. This leaves a crater in the dirt, which frightens him. "You were saying?"

"Naruto, we don't threaten our clients," Kakashi tells him.

"I wasn't threatening. I was just proving him wrong," he replies in a jovial tone. "So, where is this Waves?"

"It neighbors the Land of Water. Let's go." The team begins walking, Tazuna following behind.

Naruto looks over at the old man. "Question; why did you come to us for escorts? Doesn't Wave have ninja villages?"

"No, they don't," Kakashi tells him. "Countries who hold ninja villages are the only ones who have military power. Some countries are too small to need a ninja village so they don't suffer the same pressure as those who do."

"So wait, do each of these countries with ninjas have kages?" Naruto follows up.

"No," Sakura states, throwing in her intelligence. "Only the five strongest villages of the five strongest countries have shinobi leaders with the title Kage. Konoha, Kiri, Kumo, Suna and Iwa are the only villages with village leaders who reign over the thousands of ninjas in the world; they are the Hokage, the Mizukage, the Raikage, the Kazekage and the Tsuchikage."

'That old pervert is that incredible? Sounds fishy...' Sasuke thinks this, and obviously doesn't voice it.

"Huh, so old man Hokage is that strong? Nice! I bet he knows what it feels like to be strong." The blond ninja grins, his admiration of Sarutobi growing. But then he realizes something. "So then wait, does that mean this mission is no big deal?"

"As this is a regular C-Ranked mission and not a C-ranked manin mission most likely all we'll face are nearby demons we may or may not come across, as well as gangs or thieves." Sasuke looks over at Tazuna, noticing him flinch at his response.

The group continues down the road. The sole jonin looks off to the side, noticing puddles surrounding them. Naruto ends up stepping in one, and immediately complains.

"That's what you get for not paying attention." Sakura sticks her tongue out at him. Naruto groans before trying to pull his leg out; though his grunts express difficulty. She sees him and sighs. "Oh come on. It's just a puddle."

"It feels like something's grabbing me!" He pulls out Yamato and jabs the water, which lifts up on its own.

More puddles rise up. Color gathers turning them into ninjas with clawed gauntlets. The one next to Naruto grabs his throat and shoves him to the ground, saying, "One down!"

"Naruto!" Sakura shouts reaching for him.

"Nice try!" Naruto reaches his hand up, punching the ninja in the face and sending him flying.

The others respond in kind with their own assault, most aiming for Tazuna. Sasuke quickly moves, slashing most of them down with ease using Rebellion, leaving two being dealt with by Kakashi. "That was simple."

"Didn't see this coming." Naruto looks up noticing one last guy coming down.

Sakura leaps up and takes him down using a flying side kick. The 'soccer ball' bounces off a tree, face planting into moist dirt. "Who the hell are these guys? They're ninjas so something's up..."

"Well, we could wait until they wake up, or..." Kakashi turns to Tazuna dropping the two locked in his arms. "We could instead ask Tazuna-san."

"Eh?" He is taken back by his accusation. "Where's that coming from?"

"I had noticed them before the attack; after all, while it did get cloudy there was no rain whatsoever in days. There's no way there would be puddles."

Naruto looks around, noticing those they came out of were the only puddles present. 'That's right... I noticed it too, but I guess I didn't think about it too carefully. I need to be more careful about this.'

"So, care to explain what's going on Tazuna-san?" Kakashi glares at him.

Pressure hits the old man, sweat dripping down his face quickly. "I could have killed them all without trying, but I wanted to first ascertain their target. Were they after us, or you? This proves you were their target.

"When I took the mission me and the Hokage weren't told that there were ninjas after you. With that Intel this job has now become a B-Ranked mission." Kakashi looks over at his three students.

"Kakashi-sensei, let's continue." Naruto catches his teacher's attention. "Remember the spider we fought who ended up being stronger than what we were used to? We ended up still chasing him off, so we should be fine facing off against a bunch of people."

"A bunch of people who have trained more than we have," Sakura adds against him, before smiling. "Although, I can't say no to getting stronger. We should continue."

"I want to keep going too," says Sasuke with his arms crossed. "Even if this is an expensive B ranked, he'll still have to pay once we're done."

"That's true..." Kakashi looks over at Tazuna. "So, would you care to explain what exactly we're in for?"

The old man gripes staring at nothing. "Okay, fine. Do you know of Gatou?"

"Who?" asks everyone except Kakashi.

The jonin opens his eyes asking, "Isn't he the shipping magnate, one of the world's richest men, of Gatou Company?"

"Exactly." His eyes grow grim. "He officially runs a shipping company, but in the shadows he sells drugs and other illegal items to take over businesses and countries. When someone or something comes his way, he uses ninjas and gangs to erase them. That's how he took over Waves a year ago, and has sucked our resources out from under us."

"Oh." Sakura steps in piecing things together. "You're building a bridge which is the only means of getting around him. So he hired a bunch of ninjas to get rid of you, and that's why you came to us."

"Y...Yeah. You're smart for a little girl." She grins at the compliment.

"So if you guys were in this kind of trouble why did you lie?" Sasuke asks him.

"Waves is poor. We can't afford a B-rank mission; I gave up all of my savings just to get this mission!"

"Regardless, it is through majority vote that we continue with this mission and guide you back home." Kakashi's declaration prompts everyone to throw their fists up. Tazuna looks off to the side smug knowing he's won.

The group leave, having tied up the ninjas to a tree. After they're gone a few feet, a shadow approaches them. "So, you lost..."

"It couldn't be helped. They were all good! One of them even had this sword that cut through our demon armor!"

"Really..." The man holds a hand out, and water sprays forward scraping them away. "Oh well. I'll handle them myself." He then dissolves.

The next morning, a lone boat crosses the ocean separating the land of Fire from Waves. On it Kakashi, Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, Tazuna and the ferryman situate, moving closer to the other end passing by an unfinished bridge.

"Is that it?" Naruto asks as he looks up, being quieter than usual.

"Yeah." As soon as they reach land, the ferryman returns to the other shore. "Good luck guys, you're gonna need it."

"Yeah, thanks." After leaving the boat they continue slowly towards land. No longer did they press on did the mist around then start to lift. Still, the ninjas were on high alert.

"Over there!" Naruto shouts, throwing a kunai to a nearby bush. It hits something, giving a small noise. He rushes to the scene, and sees a little white rabbit. It seems to have fainted from that near death experience. "Ah! I'm so sorry!"

"That's what you get for acting all tough." Sasuke grumbles as he watches Naruto hug the rabbit. Tazuna facepalms himself as he begins to realize just how childish this ninja is.

Kakashi seems to be surprised, but for another reason. 'It's coat is white...'

'Why is its coat white?' Sakura notices it as well. The only reason such a thing would be white is if the rabbit was living in cold weather, not warm. And especially not while the sun is still out. Otherwise it would be brown. "Oh no..."

Before everyone could comment on what Sakura was muttering, Kakashi shouts, "GET DOWN!" Everyone drops, just as a blade comes flying pass them stabbing into a tree. The jonin gets back up and sees someone standing atop the outstretched hilt; taking in his grim attire and pale skin, he could only ask, "Are you the ninja Gatou hired to kill Tazuna?"

The man laughs, turning in a slight gracing his targets with a single bloodshot eye. "I was wondering what kind of ninjas that old coward would get to protect him. Turns out it's you, Sharingan Kakashi."

"What?" Sasuke looks over at Kakashi in shock. 'Sharingan? This guy?'

"How does this guy know you?" Sakura asks.

"Your teacher here has a nice little picture in the bingo book," says the assassin before he twirls on his weapon, kneeling down in a taunt. His hitai-e of Kiri is shown. "Why wouldn't there be one of a Copy Ninja and expert Manin? After all, you've made quite a name of yourself; having participated in the Third Shinobi World War, hunted down and sealed away the mighty A-class demon Gomorrah, and being rumored to have copied over 1000 jutsus is more than enough."

'Whoa. This guy was that impressive?' Sakura looks over at Kakashi with more intrigue. 'Gomorrah... I think I know that name from somewhere...'

'The bingo book... Wait, I think I know what he's talking about.' Naruto then remembers something he's been told of about his mom being in the bingo book right next to dad, how they were ranked S among the most sought after targets. "So, if you're not too squeamish on introductions, who are you? I can't call you Ugly Browless forever."

"Naruto, that's Zabuza Momochi, a Nukenin from Kirigakure. Also, a former member of Kiri's Shinobigatana Shichinin Shu." This adds to the danger of the situation; their new foe is allot more dangerous than the last guys. "This guy is beyond even your capabilities. I'll handle him."

Kakashi pulls up his his hitai-e, exposing his closed left eye. It opens to reveal a red eye with three tomoes spiraling around the black pupil. Sasuke looks at it, immediately recognizing the eye as the Sharingan. 'He does have the Sharingan!'

'That eye...' Naruto looks at it, realizing that's the Sharingan mentioned by Zabuza.

"To see the Sharingan so soon means you're ready to take this seriously." Zabuza stands tall on his weapon, initiating a jutsu that causes a mist to arise around everyone. His form becomes one with white darkness.

"Form up!" On his orders, the beginners gather around Tazuna. Kakashi stares forward into the mist, the Sharingan the only eye surveying the scenery. 'Zabuza is a master in the silent killing. It's his job to hunt down and kill Tazuna, so he has only one option.'

Sasuke grips the side of his head painfully. Seeing this, Naruto asks, "What's wrong with you?"

"Forgotten a bit on how to do this, but I'm fine."

"Do what?"

"He's not the only one here with a Sharingan."

"Eh?"

"Is that so?" Without warning, Zabuza appears between the rookies and Tazuna. "It's over."

In a flash, Kakashi rushes into Zabuza, piercing him with a kunai as everyone gets away. The victim bleeds water before dissolving. Another Zabuza appears behind him, slashing through the jonin in a single stroke. Though his actions bring about a similar result, water splashing off the surface of his giant cleaver. "What?!" 'The Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu? He managed to copy my technique even in the thick mist?'

"And with this, it's now over," Kakashi declares, holding up a kunai to his throat. Zabuza simply chuckles, a laughter that builds up slowly. That Zabuza then dissolves into water. 'Another one!?'

The nukenin swings his giant blade, forcing the Copy Ninja to duck underneath. He then stabs his weapon into the ground and roundhouse kicks Kakashi into the water. Sasuke carefully studies him, realizing he's efficient in taijutsu as well.

The nukenin leaps ontop of the water, holding his hand to Kakashi as he initiates a technique. "Suiro no Jutsu!" Water gathers around him, encasing the ninja in a prison of water. "There we go."

'Crap! I was too careless.'

"As much as I'd love to finish you off, I'll be collecting on my job getting rid of these kids." Zabuza with his left hand, summons a clone of water that approaches the others.

Kakashi curses inward. 'Zabuza is about as strong as I am, but these three have proven their capabilities. I'll have to trust in them.'

"Looking at you kids and your cute little headbands... A real ninja is someone who brushes with death on numerous occasions." The clone Zabuza chuckles as he holds his hand up in a sign. "Only those who have their names placed in my bingo book have the right to be called ninjas!"

In a flash he disappears into the mist. Sasuke reacts fast pulling out his sword, knocked to the side by the giant metal blade. He then appears beside Sakura, kicking her headfirst to the ground.

Naruto watches in shock as he manages to single-handedly whoop everyone. 'This is bad! I didn't think a jonin would be THIS strong!'

"Next." The clone appears before Naruto, striking him in the face and sending him tumbling over. His mom's lunch falls out, just a meter or two away.

'That hurt so much! Not even mom can bust that out...' Thinking of his mom for a brief moment he eyes the meal he took with him, gasping in shock when the clone steps on and destroys it.

"Oh, whoops! I saw that fall out of your bag and I thought, 'that must have been important to you!' Was it? Was it important?" The water assassin's taunting stirs anger up in Naruto, causing him to laugh. "Good. I'll take that look with me to your grave!"

Naruto raises his left fist. His concealed demon fist knocks back his sword, taking the assassin by surprise. 'What?! He blocked my Kurikiribocho?! With a normal hand?! No... There's something about that hardness... Genjutsu?'

"Hey Scarface!" Zabuza quickly ducks underneath Rebellion's swing, jumping away to dodge the follow up swipe as well.

"Shannaro!" Sakura comes in and kicks Zabuza further away, before landing beside Tazuna. She rubs her cheek to wipe away blood. "You guys good to take him on yourself? Someone's still got to look after the old man."

Naruto and Sasuke stand tall, both eyes full of focus and determination. "Sasuke, I got an idea to handle him? You ready?"

"Yeah. I can't use this long enough, so you lead the way this time." He then looks over at Naruto, as if to answer the question about to leave his lips. The blond's cerulean blue open in surprise when they focus on the red two tomoes that are Sasuke's Sharingan.

"Good, you got a trick up your sleeve." Naruto pulls Yamato from his waist. "It's time to show the teamwork that led to our graduation."

* * *

><p>Yusei: That wasn't so bad.<p>

Takeshi: Next chapter Team Seven sets Kakashi free and then another newbie appears.

Julia: Don't forget to review. Always check for an update every Wednesday.


	6. Big Fish, Little Fish

_**Ever Ask Why the Devil May Cry**_

Disclaimer: The lawyers from Naruto and Devil May Cry told me I don't need to say I do not own any piece of the creator's or distributor's properties every chapter. They lied.

**_Chapter 6: Big Fish, Little Fish_**

* * *

><p>"Fights to the death between students." Zabuza's sudden statement brings everyone to look at him. There are eyes victimized with horror once it hits them. "You little babies probably had to demonstrate how to properly use techniques, am I right? To determine who would graduate Kiri would have an entire class fight to the death, and only those who make it out with their lives would pass. Friends who ate at the same table as one another would kill eachother."<p>

"What's he talking about?" Naruto asks.

"That was how Kiri used to do their graduations," Kakashi explains. Even he sounds disgusted about it all. "The Bloody Mist changed their graduation exams ten years ago, when a devil appeared."

"A devil?" This peaks their interest.

"Without hesitation, without reason, this single child who wasn't a ninja killed a hundred other students."

Zabuza slowly shakes, laughter slowly escaping his mouth. He then throws his head back, full blown laughter cackling from the heavens. "Oh boy! That sure was fun."

His creepy narrow eyes glare at Sasuke and Naruto, a tremendous killer intent released that paralyzes them. Zabuza lunges forward striking Sasuke in the gut knocking the wind out of his sails. He then draws his Kubikiribocho, prepared to end him.

"Oh no you don't!" Naruto rushes forward, performing his signature Kage Bunshin to create twenty. They each leap up and attack the nukenin, who swings them all away.

"Pathetic!"

"Not so!" Sasuke kicks Zabuza away, flipping up to grab Rebellion raising it high. With all his might, he throws his weapon spinning past the clone.

The real Zabuza watches it come towards him. 'Coming after me huh? Nice try!' He grabs Rebellion by the handle. To his surprise however, Naruto can be seen coming at him. The blond ninja makes a headbutt, knocking the assassin off balance. His hand comes loose from the prison.

Zabuza recovers briefly, turning his eyes down at Naruto angrily. "You damn brat!"

Free, Kakashi makes a flip kick sending Zabuza into the water. He then lands, looking over to the semi submerged Naruto. "Are you okay Naruto?"

"Yeah."

"That technique, how did you pull it off?"

"Oh that?" Naruto pulls back with his dominant, yanking Rebellion out from the water into his grasp. "There's a thin wire wrapped around this sword. With it we took him off guard since I let it pull me in."

Water explodes. The demon of Kirigakure rises from the lake, glaring darts at the hunters before him. "You lot have been making me out as a fool! I will not stand for it!" He cancels his clone to focus on the targets.

"You guys stand back. It's time I finished what I started," says the jonin before he forces the Sharingan at Zabuza. Naruto swims back to shore with ease.

In what feels like a flash, both expert ninjas form several handseals. "Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!" Two dragons made of water splash into one another, causing a tidal wave that sends Naruto face first into shore. Within that water cover, Kakashi dashes in blocking Zabuza's sword with kunai, before sidestepping to hook his arm around his head before he could punch.

'What's going on?!' Zabuza tries to break free, only for Kakashi to step in and apply more pressure. He then draws out a two pronged kunai and throws it, only to be countered by a shuriken and take a knee to the face. 'Why are my moves being predicted so easily?! Is it his Sharingan?!'

"Raiton: Raiju Tsuiga!" His lightning beast makes a surprising return as it pulverizes the pale assassin pinning him to a tree by shore. Three kunai follow, piercing his leg, arm and knee. The Copy Ninja lands above him in the tree.

"What are you?" he manages to mutter.

His eye dry of mercy, the elite manin raises a kunai. "A devil hunter, and you're my next kill."

Before he could make the next hit, he looks over to see spikes coming his way. He jumps away as they tear the tree apart and pierce into Zabuza's neck. Kakashi lands and notes the spikes are really ice needles.

"I will ask you to let him go." Everyone looks over to see a scaly demon. It's shaped in a similar way to a tortoise, wielding a shell on its right shoulder. Its three eyes like a visor focus on Kakashi and the impaled Zabuza.

"Who are you?" Instead of answering, the demon summons ice threads to assault him. It then moves in a flash, coming to Zabuza and taking him away.

"I'm pretty sure without thinking you already know that I am a demon." The demon summons an icy mist around itself and Zabuza, disappearing within.

Seeing the demon disappear, Tazuna gives a sigh of relief. "Oh thank god... I'm safe!"

"Who the hell was that guy? He just killed Zabuza like he was nothing..." Naruto mutters. Having seen the events he feels so weak. "It took all of us to get this far against him, and he offs him like that!"

"Frustrating, isn't it?" Kakashi looks over to him. "Unfortunately, that's how it is; without having seen the world, there already exists enemies and rivals stronger than your wildest imagination. The sooner you realize it, the stronger you want to become."

'That bums me out...' Naruto looks depressed the more he realizes how strong that demon is. That spider was nothing like him. Before he could sulk anymore, Kakashi drops down to a knee quickly covering up his left eye. "Sensei!"

"Using the Sharingan tires me out," he explains. Naruto goes over and helps him up.

'Maybe he's not an Uchiha after all... It could be a transplant...' Sasuke watches as Naruto helps Kakashi forward.

…

The demon lands in a field surrounded by marsh. It lays Zabuza on solid earth, laying out a tray of tools. "Now..." Energy billows from it form, dispersing as it transforms into a humanoid shape. The demon is now a young person with long dark-brown hair, wearing a white and red smile mask with the symbol of Kiri on the forehead.

He reaches down towards Zabuza, only to stop when his hand is taken hold of. "That's enough Haku. I'll handle the rest myself."

"Oh, back to life already?" asks the masked person.

"Damn it, it hurts like a mother!" He pulls the ice needles out of his throat. "If you were gonna put me in a deathlike state you could have used a different part of my body."

"It's fine. You would have died had I not shown up."

"You look like you're in a bit of trouble Zabuza..." Zabuza looks around at the sight of the noise. "You know, you could still accept our help. Master Mundus will save a seat for you."

"Zabuza-sama, you don't have to do this..."

"Shut up Haku," he tells him, before nodding. "Fine. Are you gonna tell us your name?"

"You don't need to know that. Just know that I am a stranger in the dark." The presences disappears, leaving Zabuza calmer.

…

"Are you okay there, sensei?" asks Tazuna's daughter Tsunami, a dark blue haired dazzling mother kneeling before Kakashi's rest bed.

Sakura sighs as she stares at him. "The Sharingan is powerful, but it takes so much power he ends up being useless afterwards... And once again I never got to do anything."

"That's pretty much all you do anyway," Naruto states, before ducking to avoid a kunai to the head.

"I'm serious; I couldn't do a damn thing this time because I had to protect that old drunk!"

"I'm right here, I can hear you," Tazuna grumbles.

"I know, I can smell you." Sakura sighs while looking at her teacher.

Sasuke looks down at his hands. "That other demon... You think it might be connected to that Gatou guy?"

The Jonin opens his right eye. "I believe so. I find it odd that it would come and attack us just to kill Zabuza and make a break for it. It went to save him."

"Eh? How does that work? I mean, didn't you check to make sure?" The blond ninja wonders this. Though as he thinks of it, he grows with anticipation thinking he could fight against Zabuza again.

"You saw the weapon he used to kill Zabuza right?" Sasuke opens his weapons pouch, pulling out a senbon needle. "They were the same length and mass as this needle. Not much useful in killing, unless it hits a vital area."

Sakura gasps as he finishes, having realized what's going on. Naruto however is still stuck on one thing. "Why do you have that?"

"Focus!" He grasps Naruto's mouth, puckering his lips together. "The human body's vital areas are the liver, lunges, spine, clevical vein, neck vein, brain, kidneys and heart. He didn't strike any of those areas because they pierced his throat! But an expert of the human body can determine what spots to hit to induce a temporary death! Meaning, they were in cahoots and he's going to come back!"

Naruto pulls free. "Don't do that again!"

'What are they talking about?' Tsunami wonders from the sidelines.

"Sasuke is right," Kakashi states grimly, causing Tazuna to slide down the wall as if having a heart attack. "Zabuza will be coming back, but we have time to prepare for him. Which is great because I need some time to regain my strength."

"Hey, aren't you guys overthinking this?" asks Tazuna regaining his composure. "I mean, that demon could just be looking for a snack. And why would a demon work for a human anyway?"

Kakashi shakes his head. "No, it's best to prepare. With what I saw and this suspicious feeling in my gut we should get ready for anything; that is a basic rule of being a ninja. Plus, even if Zabuza's dead Gatou would no doubt send someone, or something, stronger."

His eyes then focus on Tazuna. "Besides, I've seen it before. As long as a contract is made, demons will do anything to fulfill it; even if it means working for a human."

"But how exactly are we gonna prepare?" Sakura asks, having been silent for a while.

"Yeah, what kind of training is good enough to get us ready for him?" asks Naruto while rubbing his cheeks.

"Well, for that..." Kakashi grins under his mask. He pulls out sheets of paper from his vest. "I'm going to teach you nature transformation." As he speaks, a lone boy watches them from the shadows of a hallway.

The Next Day...

Outside in the forest Team Seven has gathered. Kakashi, walking around in stilts, passes out three sheets of paper to each of them. "Alright, you know how to utilize chakra correct?"

"The what?" Naruto blurts out without thinking, and immediately gets bad looks from everyone else. "Oh right, chakra!"

"You do know what it is right? Because I don't want to waste a paragraph explaining it," Sakura tells him.

"What the hell does that mean?! Of course I get chakra! How else do you think we did those tree climbing and water walking exams?"

"Then you must know how to summon your nature through chakra alone." Kakashi holds up a slip of paper. The boys have this strange look of perplexity on their faces. Seeing he's right, Kakashi begins. "When utilizing ninjutsu, shinobi transform their chakra into elemental forces that match. There are five main elements chakra can turn into that become the base of elemental ninjutsu; Fire, Wind, Lightning, Earth and Water."

"So, how do we determine which we have?" asks Sakura as she flaps the paper about.

"Simple; by infusing out chakra into these special slips of paper, they will undergo and change that will show you what affinity your chakra has." He holds his paper up, and it quickly wrinkles. "Now, you try."

The three ninjas form their chakra inside the slips of paper. Within seconds the results are shown.

Sakura's paper dampens. "Ew, gross!"

Sasuke's wrinkles up. "Just like Kakashi's?"

Naruto's cuts in half. "Eh? What's this?"

"Well, congratulations all three of you," Kakashi says with a smile.

"So, what does all this mean?" Sasuke asks him in a demanding tone.

"Should the paper wrinkle that means your chakra is more in tune with lightning. Fire will turn it to ash. Wind will cut it in half. Earth will make it into dirt and crumble away. Water will make it wet." With his explanation, everyone begins to realize their specialties.

"Water? That's just lame!" Sakura complains.

"Lightning huh? Alright, I can deal with that." Sasuke grins proudly at his choice.

"Wind?" Naruto begins thinking of the abilities his chakra can bring, and thinks of making a hurricane that he can use to steal a large amount of panties.

"Now that we know of your affinities, I can start teaching you specific techniques to match those affinities," he says, turning to Sakura first. "In addition chakra flow and shape manipulation can come in down the road. But first, you're up; water techniques are allot simpler to utilize around a body of water, and are more versatile and capable of changing shape and state."

Kakashi some seals slowly. "Suiton: Hahonryu!" He holds his left hand out, calling water from a nearby source to gather and transform into a miniature whirlpool. "A midranged technique, it can be used to create a shield or be used on the offense. Unfortunately, this is all I'm capable of doing. It's a technique I copied from someone else too."

"Hmm..." Sakura studies the technique as it ends, before walking away. "Alright, I can do that."

"Next, Sasuke." Sasuke comes forward as Kakashi prepares. "Lightning styles create lightning attacks by increasing the vibration of their chakra, creating piercing attacks and quick movements that can also inflict numbness."

He then performs handseals. "Raiton: Byakurai!" White lightning shoots out from his index like a bullet, piercing through a tree. A small hole can be seen through it. "Byakurai can create lightning condensed to be a single, strong shot. There's not much power, but the closer it's shot the stronger it is."

"Let's see..." Sasuke steps aside as he prepares to practice.

"And finally, Naruto." Naruto steps forward. "Wind style is much rarer compared to the other four basic forms. By making chakra as thin and sharp as possible through air circulations, it combines brute force with keen precision to deal cutting and slashing damage." He performs the handseals for a technique.

"Futon: Daitoppa!" Kakashi blows a strong gust of wind that blows away all of the leaves in the tree. "It simply creates a gust of wind that can even be a pleasant breeze or a slashing hurricane."

"Whoa, that blows me away!" Naruto says as he does the handseals. But instead he gets it wrong, and coughs. "Eh?"

"You did the seal wrong. The handseals have to be accurate or else it won't work," Kakashi tells him before placing a hand on top of his head. "When you've managed to perform the techniques 20 times in a row flawlessly, I'll prepare you for using different moves later."

"Why can't we use more techniques?" asks Sakura. "One technique won't be enough."

"They say that the best ninja can use over a thousand techniques, but that's wrong. A true ninja is feared if he can use one move over a thousand times." Naruto blinks as he takes it in, grinning.

"What? What kind of ninja would use the same move over a thousand times without trying to learn others?" Sasuke grumbles this as he walks off. "Still, if this gets me stronger that's fucking fine."

"Whatever." Sakura shrugs and walks away, preparing to do her training. They each drop their papers as well. This leads to Naruto's falling on top of Sasuke's, and the former's twin slips of paper having another reaction. The two pieces merge together before turning yellow, and Sasuke's becomes black.

Kakashi steps to the side watching everyone train. Sasuke and Naruto struggle more using their moves, but Sakura easily manages to get hers down. 'Well, it seems Sakura has a better handle of chakra control that even the boys lack. But, this is to be expected; Sakura's heritage is part of this reason, and Naruto and Sasuke have chakra levels larger than hers strangely.'

Time passes by as they train in their techniques, Kakashi having long left to rest. Though Sakura manages to successfully make her techniques work she notes the others having difficulty. Especially Naruto.

"He either gets out a small gust or coughs... Weak." She shrugs and leaves, heading over to Tazuna's home. Sasuke has long since left.

"Ugh... I think I'm getting better at this." Naruto groans before trying once more, using Daitoppa to blow away the wind off of a tree without tearing the tree apart. "Yes! Now, to try it again."

He prepares his technique again, but before he could a kunai comes his way. Jumping away, his eyes focus on the person in the shadows. "Who are you?!"

He steps out of the darkness, revealing himself to be a hooded man wearing a white vest with a flaming flower pattern over a dark gray shirt and leathery jeans. He holds matching boots and fingerless black gloves. "Just call me, a stranger in the dark."

Naruto takes out a kunai and prepares himself against him. "And just what does a stranger want with me?"

"You'll see." He dashes forward, reaching Naruto in the blink of an eye. He punches him square in the jaw knocking him into the ground, before kicking him in the ribs causing the blond to roll over.

Naruto recovers and rushes hastily, throwing a hook at the enemy. He grabs his fist with ease and squeezes. 'What the hell is this guy?!' "Futon: Daitoppa!" Naruto uses his recently learned technique at him, causing the threat to release him and jump away.

"Time I took this seriously; Kage Bunshin no jutsu!" Naruto summons two clones and sends them into battle.

The man disappears in a flash, before coming up before the real Naruto and jabbing him in the stomach with a palm thrust. He then quickly spins, slashing one clone into nothing using a strange kunai. "Kage Bunshin? You're more like her everyday."

"Her who?!" The man then ducks underneath his other clone and flips over it, piercing its back with the same kunai. 'He's good! He's so fast to be able to move that quickly. But, it's not something I can't overcome!'

"Prepare yourself." The man throws his kunai at Naruto, who leans to the left avoiding it. He then pulls out Yamato and moves in close.

The man appears before Naruto, only to get struck in the chin by Yamato's hilt. He then rears his right fist back to punch him in the eye, only to miss when he disappears. The man appears a few feet behind him.

He pulls his kunai from the tree and pockets it. "Can't draw Yamato can you? Figured as much."

"Seriously, who are you?"

"Well, you've managed this far and got a hit in. But it's time I ended this. Trigger." Light erupts from his body, cloaking him in a form Naruto has never seen before. This dark orange glow almost frightens him.

"Oh, I get it! You're a demon!" Naruto holds Yamato as a drawn sword.

"Not just any demon." The man raises his right hand. Energy spirals in his palm until compressing into a sphere. He moves in an instant before Naruto, slamming the attack into his stomach. The energy spirals rapidly, until it releases and blows away Naruto painfully across a field.

After waiting for a while, the man appears just before Naruto, watching all the blood and wounds he's inflicted upon him exposed. The blond struggles to move. He steps forward to attack, before collapsing face planting the ground. "It seems you aren't fully living up to the promise of becoming stronger. Even the small amount of the Kyubi's chakra you got from her was only enough for those whiskers. Maybe this will jump start your engines; I was wondering when I'd get to do this."

He raises his right hand, revealed to be a Devil Bringer. A yellow orange ball of chakra is formed, before he jabs it straight into Naruto's exposed stomach. He then twists clockwise, a black spiral appearing around his navel with eight characters surrounding it.

"Continue to grow. You are the key after all to my true plans." He then vanishes in a flash of yellow light.

* * *

><p>Manabu: That wraps that up.<p>

Aether: Next chapter, Naruto returns from his training ready to battle against Akatsuk-

Yusei: No! That's the wrong damn story!

Aether: Okay, sorry! Geez, like you don't make this mistake. Next chapter, Naruto awakens and meets Haku.


End file.
